Toyota tops brand value list again, Tesla breaks in

For the 13th year running, Toyota has been named the most valuable brand on the world automotive scene.

Hanging onto 1st place in the 17th annual Interbrand survey of global brand value, Toyotaranked 5th overall, again behind Apple (1), Google (2), Coca-Cola (3) and Microsoft (4). The Japanese car maker’s 2016 result is one better than last year, however, with IBM dropping from fifth to sixth behind Toyota.

While Apple’s brand worth was valued at US$178 million, Toyota came in at US$53 million. Tesla’s brand, at the other end of the scale, was valued at a mere US$4 million.

According to Daniel Binns, a managing director with marketing consultancy Interbrand, Tesla’s arrival in the top 100 is a landmark moment for the list.

“The strength of the Tesla brand punches so far above its weight,” Binns told business paper Forbes this week. “It has such a presence among the man on the street that, when you ask them who’s innovating in this category, it’s Tesla, despite the small number of cars it has produced so far. It’s a reflection of future performance.”

Binns said that Tesla’s ascendancy can be attributed to the unveiling of the ‘affordable’ new Model 3, which became available for pre-order on the same day and quickly racked up hundreds of thousands of deposits.

“The market has responded to that car,” he said. “The value of the enterprise is a reflection of people’s belief in how Model 3 will transform the nature of Tesla’s business and return profits”.

Interbrand’s valuations are based on three key components: an analysis of the financial performance of the branded products or services, analysis of the role the brand plays in purchase decisions, and analysis of the brand’s competitive strength.